They watched the planet, Rorla, grow into reality on their screen. As they drew near, the Great Galaxy began to lose definition. The spiral arms were lost to view, and the core of the nebula became a blazing field of individual suns. The one to which Rorla belonged was located near the tip of one of the arms, somewhat similar to Earth’s position in its own galaxy. The ship’s velocity dipped below the speed of light as they approached the thick field of suns and planetary systems. George Barron was entranced by the passage of new suns, each seemingly like the last. By the thousands and tens of thousands, they sped past the ship.
“I don’t see how they navigate through such a star field,” he said. “That alone is an almost unbelievable accomplishment.”
“It’s comparatively easy here,” said Ro
